Wheeler named NHL 2nd star

Winnipeg Jets forward Blake Wheeler was named the NHL's second star on Monday, Feb. 20, 2012, after notching a goal and eight assists in four games. The right-winger has a career-high 46 points with 21 games left in the season. (BRIAN DONOGH/Winnipeg Sun Files)

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It took nearly five months and 19 weeks, but a member of the Winnipeg Jets has finally been honoured as one of the NHL’s weekly stars.

Right- winger Blake Wheeler was named the league’s second star on Monday after notching a goal and seven assists in four games. He has a career-high 46 points with 21 games remaining.

“He’s stepped up this year,” captain Andrew Ladd said. “He wants to be a leader for us and be a go-to guy. He’s done that. Every time he has the puck he’s dangerous. His speed is evident every night. Like I said last week: Our top guys gotta be our top guys, and we need that from him every night.”

Anaheim’s Jonas Hiller and Ottawa’s Jason Spezza were the first and third stars, respectively.

LUCKY 13?: For the fourth time in his career, Jets left-winger Andrew Ladd ended a 13-game goal drought. He did it on Sunday night when he scored on the power play against the Colorado Avalanche.

“It’s good to know my limit’s 14,” Ladd said with a laugh. “I know what my game is and what I need to do. If I’m doing the right things and I’m not scoring, that’s one thing. I can deal with that.

“If I’m not playing as well, that’s something I have a harder time with. But it was definitely nice to get one.”

TOUGH CUSTOMER: Jets right- winger Chris Thorburn received a nasty gash just below his left eye in the first period on Sunday night when he took a high stick from Avalanche forward Paul Stastny. Then, late in the third period, Thorburn decided to drop the mitts with Binscarth product Cody McLeod. The blood continued to leak.

So why would a guy with an open wound on his face decide to fight as well?

“It looks weird, I guess, but not really,” Thorburn said. “It’s part of it. Your adrenalin’s going so much, that you don’t really feel anything.”

Thorburn needed four stitches after the game to close the gash, and he didn’t like that one bit. “I’ve just got this thing with needles,” he said. “They kind of make me nauseous.”

SECOND-LINE SUCCESS: Members of the Jets’ second line have six of Winnipeg’s 12 goals during its three-game winning streak. Evander Kane has three, Alex Burmistrov has two, and the old guy, Kyle Wellwood, has one.

“We’ve had good chemistry so far,” said Wellwood, who is sporting an 11-stitch gash on his lip. “Burmi’s brought a lot of jump and enthusiasm to our line, and it seems to energize Kane. When Kane’s shooting and skating the way he can, it’s easy to be the third guy.”

IN THE HANGAR: Wellwood on Tuesday has a chance to play against his younger brother Eric, a forward with the Flyers, but Eric wasn’t among the top four lines at Monday’s practice, say reports out of Philadelphia … Jets defenceman Zach Bogosian (upper body) is unlikely to play on Tuesday. “I’m shooting for Thursday (against Tampa Bay),” head coach Claude Noel said … Flyers defenceman Matt Carle is minus-5 in three games against Winnipeg … Jets centre Nik Antropov has two goals and three assists in three games against Philadelphia … Flyers forward Scott Hartnell has three goals in three games versus Winnipeg … Wheeler has five assists in three games against Philadelphia … The Jets have won back-to-back regulation games for the first time since early December … If Winnipeg can beat Philadelphia, it would match its season-high streak of four wins in a row.